A bumper harvest for Good Food Oxfordshire

Over the past couple of decades, numerous projects have come and gone in Oxfordshire in an effort to get more locally produced food directly to residents, but like a wave building, it's gathered weight and speed over time.

18 November will see the the annual Oxfordshire Food Summit which will celebrate the progress made by over 230 organisations across the county towards a healthier, fairer, and more sustainable local food system, as laid out in the Oxfordshire Food Strategy. It will also explore how they can work together to build a more resilient local food system.  And this year, there has been progress in (literal) spades.

A recent addition to Oxford’s local food ecosystem is OxFarmtoFork, an initiative led by Good Food Oxfordshire (GFO). It works to connect local farmers directly to larger local institutions, demonstrating that institutional buying power can effectively support the local economy, and, in particular, farmers. In its first year pilot, OxFarmtoFork successfully facilitated the movement of 43.6 tonnes of Oxfordshire-produced agroecological food from farmers directly into the city, and is quickly becoming a local institution.

One of the most measurable achievements of the project is its financial impact on regional agriculture. A total of £102,000 has been paid directly to participating local producers, ensuring that wealth generated within the region stays within the region. 

OxFarmtoFork is possible because of the support, early uptake, and regular participation of 35 institutional buyers, including 28 Oxford University colleges. By using OxFarmtoFork, they can focus their buying power first locally, and then complement their requirements with goods from national wholesalers.

Small-scale farmers have traditionally struggled to access the complex procurement systems of large institutions. However, by coordinating nearly 600 separate deliveries, the initiative has bridged this gap. It allows growers to focus on sustainable land management while securing a reliable, fair-price market for their harvests. Ten local producers have so far benefited from this streamlined supply chain, including North Aston Organics, Sandy Lane Farm, and Blackland Organics. 

Beyond the economic figures, the environmental impact of the project is substantial. The transition to local sourcing has significantly reduced food miles, cutting the carbon emissions associated with long-haul logistics. By prioritising agroecological methods – farming practices that work with nature to restore soil health and biodiversity – the project supports the long-term resilience of the local ecosystem. The 43.6 tonnes of food moved during the pilot proves that a low-carbon food system is a practical reality for Oxford, providing a scalable model for community-wealth building through the simple act of changing what sits on the dinner plate.

In addition to these great strides, Oxfordshire has also secured a Sustainable Food Places (SFP) Gold Award, the UK’s highest national honour for regional food sustainability. The award places Oxfordshire among a cohort of just seven areas nationwide to achieve Gold status, highlighting the success as a unified city-county partnership. Central to the award was the OxFarmToFork initiative.

Building on its 2023 Silver Award, GFO’s network united more than 230 regional actors, including local councils, agricultural enterprises, charities, and community organisations. The assessment panel praised the region’s systemic approach to food insecurity, environmental impact, and public health. 

Food journalism, perhaps, doesn’t look behind the scenes often enough. In an age of Instagram chefs and TikTok food influencers, worldwide taste crazes and televised cook-offs, local sourcing and food resilience can seem rather worthy or (dare we say it) dull. But quietly, Oxfordshire is showing the way to a better farm-to-fork journey – one that not only tastes good in the moment, but doesn’t leave you with an uneasy aftertaste.